by Sam Amick, USA TODAY Sports

by Sam Amick, USA TODAY Sports

As was first reported by USA TODAY Sports, the NBA Board of Governors voted 22-8 in favor of blocking Seattle's bid to relocate the Kings on Wednesday. The verdict came more than five months after the Seattle group headed by hedge fund manager Chris Hansen and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer had agreed to buy 65% of the team from the Maloof family that owns it for a valuation of $525 million. The bid later grew to a $625 million valuation, far surpassing the league-record of $450 million paid for the Golden State Warriors in 2010.

Yet what seemed to many to be a foregone conclusion back in January - the return of basketball to the Emerald City after the Sonics became the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2008 - wasn't after all. As NBA officials emphasized time and again during this unprecedented process, the league has a strong aversion to relocation and reserves the right to control where teams play.

So the owners backed up the relocation committee's recent recommendation to stay in Sacramento despite leaving so much money on the table in Seattle, rewarding the city that has had the Kings since 1985 and the mayor and former NBA point guard, Kevin Johnson, for his years of efforts to keep them in his native town. Now that Seattle is no longer an option, commissioner David Stern said he is hopeful that the Maloofs will finalize a deal with the Sacramento group headed by Indian software magnate Vivek Ranadive that matched the initial $525 million valuation price.

"We will talk to the Maloofs, and seek in the next 24 to 48 hours whether we can help facilitate an agreement to be signed between the Ranadive group and the Maloofs for the sale of the franchise in Sacramento," Stern said."It is my expectation that we'll be able to make a deal with the Maloofs and the Ranadive group to transfer title of the team in Sacramento. It's not a certainty, but we're going to work on that result."

Said Ranadive: "Our lawyers (the Maloofs and Ranadive groups) have been talking for sometime, and we believe that we can get this done quickly."

George Maloof, who has been heading the family's efforts, had been loyal to Hansen's group throughout but indicated that he respected the owners' decision.

"If it had to turn out this way, it's fine with us," Maloof said. "But my loyalty is with Chris because he stepped up. We tried to find somebody that would buy the team in Sacramento, and we couldn't. That's the fact of the matter."

Maloof said that the family had attempted to find owners who would keep the team in Sacramento in the past, to no avail.

"That was our first choice, but no one stepped up," Maloof said. "I'd say the mayor did a great job. He put a great team together, and so we'll see what happens. It's not over."

Yet while the vote was expected because the league's relocation committee had recommended, the vote was anything but a rubber-stamp style denial of the bid. A person in the meeting told USA TODAY Sports there was plenty of spirited debate on the topic, noting that the fact that it went nearly all four hours that were scheduled â?? as opposed to the typical meeting that would last half as long â?? was an indication of the tone of the discussion. The person requested anonymity because of the private nature of the talks.

Another person in the meeting told USA TODAY Sports that it was the Maloof side that put the 24-48 hour time element in place, indicating that they want to resolve the situation within the next two days. After nearly a decade of attempting to be part of an arena plan in Sacramento and more than two years of twists and turns after an attempt to move the team to Anaheim, Calif. in Feb. 2011, the Maloofs want to see a quick end to this situation.

Yet the person also said that the purchase price with the Sacramento group â?? a valuation of $525 million that matched Seattle's initial offer â?? still needs to be discussed and that there is a hope that it will increase. The person requested anonymity because of the private nature of the talks.

This vote ends 27 months of uncertainty surrounding the franchise. After planning to move the team to Anaheim, Calif., the Maloofs didn't ultimately file for relocation because it was made clear to them that the Board of Governors would not support the move. That was just the beginning.

A year later, Stern himself helped finalize a Sacramento arena plan with city officials and the Maloofs and it seemed a solution had finally been found. But the Maloofs walked away from the handshake deal a month later, citing concerns about their own economic viability in the agreement and eventually leading to the emergence of the Seattle suitors making their unprecedented push.